Butler men fall 83-81 to Coffeyville in Region VI final

DODGE CITY, Kan. – In a battle billed as 'Student vs. Teacher', Tuesday's Region VI men's championship between Butler and Coffeyville quickly turned into a heavyweight fight going 12 rounds.

In the end, it was Coffeyville delivering the knockout punch with a Meikkel Murray banked shot on an in-bounds lob play with 1.3 seconds remaining, as the Red Ravens took home its third Region VI title in four seasons with an 83-81 victory over Butler at the United Wireless Arena.

"It was an all-out war on both ends of the floor," said Butler head coach Kyle Fisher, who spent seven seasons as an assistant under Coffeyville head coach Jay Herkelman. "It was just what we expected. We didn't shy away from it."

Javanute Hawkins led Butler (25-8 overall) with 25 points, leaving the game momentarily in the second half with a chin injury before returning to spark the Grizzlies in the final minutes of the contest. Grehlon Easter finished with 15 points, while Shawn Hopkins added a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.

Hawkins, Easter and Hopkins were all named to the Region VI All-Tournament team.

The defeat likely ends Butler's season, as the Grizzlies are seeking an at-large bid to the NJCAA National Tournament, which runs March 16-20 in Hutchinson. Butler, who last won the Region VI tourney in 2010, has not made the tournament since receiving an at-large bid in 2015.

"I'm just thrilled for the relationship that I've built with these players and the maturity I've seen from them," Fisher said about his first season with the Grizzlies.

Butler took control of the contest early, holding a 10-point lead midway through the first half following a 9-2 Grizzly run. Hawkins started the run off with a 3-pointer, then Ndongo Ndaw added a field goal. After two Coffeyville free throws, Marque English answered with 2-of-2 foul shots and Shawn Hopkins added a basket at the 8:32 mark for a 31-21 lead.

Coffeyville (26-8) responded with a 10-0 run to tie the game with 5:33 remaining in the half, but Butler would hold off the Red Ravens for a 42-37 halftime lead.

In the second half, Butler and Coffeyville exchanged leads five times within a 2:23 span before the Ravens scored eight consecutive points. Bostyn Holt and Meikkel Murray hit back-to-back baskets, then Perry followed with a 3-pointer. With 11:06 to play, Murray made 1-of-2 free throws to put Coffeyville up 61-54.

Coffeyville extended its lead up to eight, 70-62, with 8:29 to play. Moments later, Hawkins exited the game with a cut chin after hitting the floor following a blocked shot in the paint.

With Hawkins being tended to by medical personnel, Butler rallied back with a 12-0 run beginning with 3-pointers from English and Juwan White. Returning with a new jersey and a patch over his chin, Hawkins returned to the game. Grehlon Easter then forced a steal and scored on game-tying layup with 4:24 left.

Butler then took the lead on two English foul shots with 3:52 remaining. Just twenty seconds later, Hawkins nailed a 3-pointer from the right wing for a 75-70 lead.

"We've been sparked all year long in the face of adversity," said Fisher. "Just when you thought we were go our separate ways, we relaxed, calmed down and took the lead."

Butler led 77-73 with 3:10 remaining when Coffeyville made its final push on an 8-0 run. Larry White sparked the Ravens with a 3-pointer, then the Ravens made 5-of-6 free throws over the next minute for an 81-77 lead with just 1:09 to play.

Hawkins made two foul shots to cut the Ravens' lead to 81-79 at the 1:04 mark. After a missed Coffeyville attempt, Hawkins drove the baseline for a scoop lay-in to tie the game with 32.1 seconds left.

Butler nearly forced another turnover near midcourt, but the Ravens scrambled to grab the loose ball and call timeout with 1.9 seconds on the clock. Coffeyville then set up an in-bounds lob play for Murray, with the pass coming from the sideline in front of the Ravens bench. Murray caught the pass to the left of the basket, then banked in the shot to give Coffeyville the lead.

"I don't feel like I can say we didn't have enough," Fisher said. "We had enough. They made an unbelievable play at the end of the game to get the win. We thought they were going to the basket and we just didn't do a good job."

With 1.3 seconds left, Butler called timeout, then threw a pass near the Grizzly bench that was deflected out-of-bounds by Coffeyville, taking off just 0.4 seconds off the clock.

"We were going to run some misdirection and try and get Shawn the ball," Fisher said. "The hard part is getting the catch, but we cleared out a whole side and had 1-on-1. He's our best athlete. We thought if he could get a catch, he had 1.3 (seconds) to get a dribble and get a shot. They did a good job covering it up and we were fortunate that it got deflected."

Following the deflection and 0.9 seconds remaining, the Grizzlies burned another timeout to set up a play, which resulted in a 3-point attempt by Easter.

"We got a good pin-down for Grehlon," Fisher said. "If you've got 0.9 on the clock and you get a catch and a reasonable shot, that's pretty good execution."

Easter had an open look from the left wing but, unfortunately for Butler, the attempt went off the rim to end the game, setting off a Ravens celebration on the court.

Coffeyville outrebounded Butler by a 41-30 margin, while the Grizzlies had a better field goal percentage – making 45 percent (27-of-60) to the Ravens' 42 percent clip (29-of-69).

"We're not scared of a physical game and for us to get over the hump and get the win, we had to win the battle of the boards," Fisher said. "We needed to do a better job on the defensive glass, eliminating second-chance points. They got just enough to get the win."

Both teams shot exceptionally well from the foul line, as Butler missed just two attempts and made 90 percent (18-of-20). Coffeyville made 86.4 percent of its charity shots, hitting 19-of-22.